Schools Tennis

Thursday, January 01, 2009

Schools Tennis

AEGON Schools Tennis aims to increase and improve tennis participation in schools, remove barriers by training teachers to deliver tennis in confined spaces and create a sustainable legacy for young people to continue playing in the community. Since the launch of the first ever Schools Tennis strategy in 2009, the Tennis Foundation / LTA have:

Given an opportunity to over 2.1 million children to pick up a tennis racket

Seen 42,220 young people competing in inter-school competitions (2010 / 2011 academic year)

You don’t need tennis courts to play – it can be played in school halls, playgrounds or sports halls and a range of adapted equipment and modified or alternative versions of the game are available.

The Guide to Schools Tennisprovides an overview of all the resource and support available to schools, from The Tennis Foundation and LTA.

Local Information:

Coaching in Schools

Coaches and schools across Cumbria help deliver tennis in primary and secondary schools throughout the year. These opportunities can take place before, during and after school times. Thousands of children are introduced to tennis each year in school and are then encouraged to carry on playing at their local club or centre. This helps tennis venues grow their membership and coaching programmes, whilst also adding to the school's curriculum.

Schools Tennis Competitions

Children are given the opportunity to compete in tennis competitions in school. There is currently the Year 3 & 4 Schools competition being run in Cumbria and the AEGON Schools Year 8 & 10.

From September 2011 the Cumbria Year 3 & 4 schools competition will be coordinated through the new School Games network. You can also contact Tennis Development Manager Jo Cunliffe for more information on Jo.Cunliffe@LTA.org.uk.

For the AEGON Schools Year 8 & 10 please visit the above link which will give you more information about how to enter.

Further Education Tennis

For the first time British Tennis now has an ‘offer’ in place to support the delivery of college tennis. The Guide to Further Education Tennis provides an overview of all the resources and support available to the college sector, from the Tennis Foundation and LTA.

Recent research in England shows that tennis in Further Education is growing, with 56% of colleges now providing tennis, up from 47% the previous year. Tennis also saw one of the largest increases over the last 12 months in terms of club links, with the percentage of colleges linking with a local place to play rising from 23% to 31%.

The support available through the University Tennis programme aims to grow the game, by creating more opportunities for students to play and compete. It also aims to provide students with the latest training packages, for those that have an ambition to become part of the future workforce for British Tennis.

The Guide to University Tennis is aimed at student tennis clubs and sports development staff working within universities and provides an overview of all the resources and support available to the Higher Education sector.

The Tennis Foundation and LTA are able to provide support to all universities to help increase and improve tennis provision at a range of different levels: